Spaitk-arkester



Vmatter than would otherwise escape.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES A. CUTTING, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

SPARK-ARRESTER.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 6,559, dated June 26, 1849.

To all whom t may concern Be it known that I, JAMES A. CUTTING, ofBoston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, haveinvented new and useful Improvements in Spark-Arresters forLocomotiveand other Chimneys, and that the following is a full, clear,and exact description of the principle or character which distinguishesthem from all.other things before known and of the manner of making,constructing, and using the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, making part of this specification, in which-Figure l is a vertical section; and Figs. Q and 3, horizontal sectionstaken at the lines (Aa) and (B, b) of Fig. l. The same letters indicatelike parts in all the figures.

The object of spark arresters, as may be inferred from the name, is toprevent the" escape of sparks from the chimneys of steam and otherfurnaces, particularly for the use of locomotive steam engines, toprevent the escape of ashes and the so-lid particles constituting smoke.

Experience has shown that the use of wire gauze or other netting forchimney caps has only the effect to arrest the larger sparks; and as tothe other plans which have been devised and essayed for this purposenone have attained the desired object. The cause in a great measure ofthe failure of most of the plans heretofore essayed is to be found inthe irregularity of draft in the chimney induced by the discharge of theexhaust steam into the chimney, which acting by pulsations, occasionscorresponding pulsations in the draft, which has the effect not only toforce ont of the furnace much more solid matter than would otherwisepass out, but at the same time to force through the arrester, no matterhow arranged, a much greater quantity of solid But although thedischarge of the exhaust steam' into the chimney has an injurioustendency as regards the escape of sparks, yet its usefulness in givingthe required draft is too important to be abandoned, and therefore it isa matter of importance to devise some mode of checking this irregularitywhile the influence of the exhaust steam on the draft is retained, andso to apply this `mode as to afford a better means of depositing thesparks and other impurities than by any mode heretofore known.

The object of my invention is to remedy these evils, and to this end theprinciple of my invention consists in placing above the top of thechimney a deflecting cap made in the form of an inverted funnel with theouter part bent down all around in a curve to reverberate the productsof combustion and force them down, when this is combined with a seriesof radial and inclined or curved chutes o-r passages arranged below thedeflecting and reverberating cap through which the products ofcombustion pass, and by which they are at the same time caused to take arevolving motion around the chimney, so that the sparks and other solidmatter may be forced into a receptacle below through a series of radialapertures in a diaphragm-each of the said radial apertures beingprovided along one edge with an inclined flange the better to catch thesparks, etc., and cause them to be deposited,while at the same time thepassage 0f the currents through the series of chutes has the effect inpart to exhaust whenever the force (such as a jet of steam) which impelsthe draft is momentarily suspended, and thus cont-inue the draft duringthe pulsations o-f the jet of steam.

My invention also consists in combining with the reverberating cap andseries of radial and inclined or curved chutes, an

external series of radial and inclined or curvedchutes, outside of thefirst series together with apertures in the casing leading into an outerreceptacle, so that after the products of combustion have been carriedaround in one direction the current shall be caused to changeitsdirection and also turn upward and outward to pass through the secondseries o-f chutes, and while revolving, force the solid particlesthrough the apertures int-o the surrounding and outer receptacle-thereversing of the direction of the revolution below the two series ofchutes having the effect to deposit the solid particles in the lowerreceptacle more eifectually than would otherwise be the case.

In t-he accompanying drawings (a) represents the chimney or smoke pipe,centrally over which is placed an inverted funnel shaped defiector (b)which extends beyond the diameter of the smoke pipe in a curved form toreverberate the products all around in a downward direction. Below thisand a series of chutes (c) through which the products'of combustionpass, and by which they are caused to revolve around the chimney andgradually to spread out toward the casing (CZ) but by this downward androtative direct-ion much of the solid matterl is thrown down through aseries of radial apertures (e) in a diaphragm (f), into a receptacle (g)below, the said apertures being each provided with an inclined flange(it) along one edge to facilitate the deposit of the sparks and othersolid matter. But as there is no escape at bottom for t-he gases, theytake byreason of the rotation an out ward andA upward direction to andthrough a second series of inclined chutes (i) formed like the firstseries, and on a level therewith but inclined or curved in such mannerthat the direction of the rotation of the gases is reversed so thatbelow the series of inclined chutes there are two currents, an

4inner one, in one direction, and an outer and upward one in theopposite direction. The second series of chutes is surrounded by a.casing. (j) with vertical apertures (7c) at given distances apart andextending from the upper part of the chutes nearly to the top of theapparatus, so that the circular motion of the outer current will forcethev remainingparticles of solid matter through the apertures (k) into asurrounding receptacle (Z), from which they can be removed through adoor (m). 'At the top there is a series of chutes (n) extending over theseries (i), and having a like inclination through which the gasesescape, but as there is an open circular space (0) in the middle, suchof the gases as are the lightest will be forced out there; and then, ifdesired, a wire gauze covering may be put over the whole.

will have the effect, during the momentary suspensions of the force ofthe jets of steam,

to exhaust and thereby continue and equalize the draft, and thus avoidmuch of the evil effects of the pulsations pointed out;

I have stated above that the chutes are made inclined or curved becauseboth modes will answer the purpose and produce t0 a certain e Xtent thesame result; but I prefer to make them curved, as represented in thedrawings, as that more nearly corresponds ,with the direction of thecurrents.

Vhat I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patentis- 1. The delecting and reverberating cap and the chimney incombination with the first series of inclined or curved chutes, belowthe top of the chimney substantially as described.

2. I claim the perforated diaphragm below the chutes, in combinationwith the inclined chutes and cap, substantially as described.

3. I claim the second series of inclined or curved chutes in combinationwith the first series of chutes, the cap, and the chimney, substantiallyas described.

4. And finally I claim the surrounding apertures leading into areceptacle for sparks in combination with the two reversed series ofinclined shutes, substantially as described.

JAMES A. CUTTING.

Witnesses:v Y

C. S. BARTLETT, S. R. GRIGGS.

